


Incalescence

by sara_sedai



Category: Star Trek: Voyager
Genre: Command team, Desire, F/M, Fluff, Lust, Mild Sexual Content, Prompt Fic, Shared Bed, stolen moment
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-01
Updated: 2019-03-01
Packaged: 2019-11-07 09:16:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,451
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17957798
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sara_sedai/pseuds/sara_sedai
Summary: Janeway and Chakotay awaken in a tangle of limbs. Each thinks the other is still sleeping and strives to prolong the stolen moment.This short story is based on MiaCooper's prompt for Kathryn Janeway and Chakotay to platonically share a bed (see end note for full prompt).





	Incalescence

**Author's Note:**

  * For [MiaCooper](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MiaCooper/gifts).



Warmth enveloped her; she felt steeped in it, saturated by it. She sighed and arched slightly, pressing closer to the source of her contentment. She felt a slight shift. A hand slid almost imperceptibly higher, fingers almost but not quite touching the swell of her right breast.

Half awake, she smiled and stretched, her foot sliding back to contact another. She heard a soft moan and several things clicked into place in that instant—she was not alone, this was not her bed, and, most importantly, she felt euphoric and complete.

Unwilling to relinquish the warmth and bliss that suffused her, she kept her eyes shut and worked to steady her breathing. She catalogued the sensations, her joy only slightly tempered by her analytical mind.

Chakotay was behind her, with one arm thrown over her side. His left forearm crossed her midriff, the fingers of his hand nearly brushing her right breast. She could feel his breath on her neck, deep and steady. He was still asleep.

One of his long, muscular legs was nestled between hers, and his bare chest pressed up against her back. Kathryn fought the urge to wriggle against him. The stirring of his breath gave her goose bumps. She wondered what it would feel like if he brushed his lips against the sensitive skin of her neck. What if he kissed her there? His mouth, open and hot… Her breathing became ragged.

He shifted in his sleep, his leg sliding against hers. She moaned softly, wanting to rock back against him, but she held herself in check.

They wore very little clothing. Under what circumstances would she have permitted this? _Hypothermia._

Scattered memories of her short time on this terribly cold planet sought to order themselves in her mind; instead of piecing them together, she fought to stave them off, unwilling to relinquish this flawless moment of peace and contentment.

The rigors of being a captain in isolation, with no peers for support, had begun to wear on her. Until this moment, she didn’t realize how sorely she needed to put her needs first, to be just Kathryn, the woman, not Janeway the Captain.

This small stretch of time might be all she’d have to feed her soul for the next 70 years. Closing her eyes, she pretended to sleep.

******

Chakotay heard her sigh and felt her arch back against him, pressing closer. He worked at keeping his breathing even. A sudden shift could snap her into full consciousness, and when would he ever have the opportunity to feel this again?

She was so incredibly soft. His fingers twitched. Spirits, he wanted her. He squeezed his eyes shut and focused again on keeping his breathing even. He needed to drag this moment out for as long as possible.

She stretched in his arms, making a soft mewling sound that tugged at him. Her leg slid back, the ball of her foot moving slowly against the top of his. It took all of his restraint to lie still as she murmured and shifted sleepily against him. His control slipped, his forearm slid against her warm skin, pulling her closer, and he moaned involuntarily.

Squeezing his eyes shut, he fought to rein in his longing and lust. After a few moments passed, and he felt he had a firm grip on his rampant desire, he allowed his mind to slide and savor the other sensations.

Her skin was soft, and she felt warm and pliant in his arms. If he turned his head just slightly, his lips would contact the base of her neck. What if he kissed her there? What would she taste like?

He heard her breathing change, but she hadn’t tensed. She hadn’t pushed him away. He waited, expecting her to rouse at any moment.

He knew that the instant she became fully conscious this would be over. It would be time for awkward apologies and fulsome explanations. The actions he’d taken were justified. She’d understand.

Her breathing became shallow and rapid, stirring the ache deep inside him. Leaning into her just a bit more, he shifted, his leg sliding between hers. He could feel the heat of her pressed against his thigh. She sighed softly and it took every ounce of his self-control to lie still, to not crush her to him, to roll to his back and pull her on top of him, sliding his hands down her sides to grasp her hips and arch hard up against her.

 _No._ He fought himself. _Lie still._

How long would this moment have to sustain him? This woman owned his heart and soul—but she would never know. He’d never put that on her. He couldn’t add to the already inhuman burden she bore.

He closed his eyes and drank the moment in.

******

Hearing someone approach, Kathryn opened her eyes. She watched as the tent flap parted and a small child tiptoed into the humble structure that housed them. The girl set a small tub of steaming water on the floor and placed two folded cloths on the small stool by the bed. She turned to offer a wave of greeting.

Kathryn smiled in response and reached a hand out into the cold air to wave back.

The child smiled broadly and then made her way to the tent flap to step back outside.

Kathryn pulled her hand back under the covers, retreating to the blessed warmth. She felt Chakotay stir behind her, releasing her from his embrace. As he pulled away, she sighed softly to herself. Donning the mask of command, she rolled to her back and looked over at him.

“Commander,” she said in steely voice. “We appear to be sharing a bed.”

He nodded. He sat up in the bed and turned to look at her. “You almost drowned saving that small child from the freezing water.” He closed his eyes and rubbed his forehead.

The memories returned to her one by one—the piercing scream of the locals as the ice cracked and parted beneath her feet, the feeling of the ice-cold water, the look of terror on Chakotay’s face when he told her she had hypothermia and begged her to remain conscious.

“I ordered you to strip my clothes off,” she said quietly. “Thank you, Commander.”

“You’d have done the same for me.”

She smirked at the thought of her stripping him. Turning away from him to hide her smile, she spotted her clothes, which had been strung up on a line near the fire pit.

Under the covers, she wore only her Starfleet issue briefs. She contemplated how to manage getting dressed while maintaining her authority and some semblance of grace. He’d stripped her to save her life. He’d essentially seen everything there was to see.

Steeling herself for his scrutiny, she did what had to be done. She slid from the bed, shivering as the cold air surrounded her, robbing her of the warmth, of his warmth.

She stepped closer to the pit, grateful that the coals still radiated some heat. After pulling her stiff uniform on she glanced back at Chakotay. He was facing the tent flaps, his gaze distant and unseeing.

“Chakotay,” she said to capture his attention, and then passed his clothes to him when he glanced up. “We have only one day left to find that tritanium.”

She moved to the small basin by the bed to wash her hands and face in the now tepid water. Wiping the moisture from her face, her eyes lingered on his back as he pulled his uniform on.

“About that,” Chakotay said, straightening his uniform jacket and then pulling the subzero survival suit on top. “The leader’s son has a habit of gathering rocks. He likes to carve them. He said he found some that are so hard that nothing can cut through, which sounds like tritanium to me.”

Chakotay leaned down to retrieve a rock, twice the size of his fist, from his pack. He passed it to her. “He gave me this.”

Kathryn scanned the rock with her tricorder and then smiled. “And he can tell you where he found this?”

“He provided a map.” Chakotay stood by the tent flaps, waiting for Kathryn to gather her things.

“Excellent. I hope it’s enough to repair Voyager’s hull.”

She picked up her pack and turned to look behind her at the bed that they’d shared. She was reluctant to leave the small space that had granted her reprieve and gifted her an unintended, yet cherished, moment, but the Captain was ready to move on, even if the woman was not. And the Captain always won.

“It’s time we thanked these people and went on our way.”

**Author's Note:**

> The prompt:
> 
> For some reason we have to platonically share this bed and there is so much sexual and romantic tension we can barely function and at some point during the night one of us is going to end up spooning the other and we’re going to wake up in the morning an awkward tangle of limbs but we’re both going to pretend to be asleep even though we’re actually awake because we think the other is asleep so we can lie like this for just a few more minutes


End file.
